Health Buzz: Plan B for 17-Year-Olds and Other Health News

FDA Says It Won't Appeal Court Ruling on Wider Plan B Access

Seventeen-year-olds will soon have over-the-counter access to Plan B, the so-called morning-after pill, now that a federal court has ordered the Food and Drug Administration to widen access to the medication within 30 days. The FDA says that it does not intend to appeal the decision. A U.S. court ruled in March that the FDA, under the Bush administration, had allowed politics to interfere with its decision whether to make the Plan B emergency contraceptive available to younger women, Reuters reports. OTC purchase of Plan B was first permitted in 2006 but only for those age 18 and older; younger women still needed a prescription. Plan B is made by Barr Pharmaceuticals, which merged with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries last year.

U.S. News's On Women blogger, Deborah Kotz, explored whether Plan B should be available without a prescription for girls of all ages. But even with wider access, not all stores carry the medication. Some drugstores, taking a stand against a method of birth control they consider to be abortion, refuse to stock Plan B. U.S. News previously explored women's experiences with purchasing emergency contraception and looked into the debate over whether to make Plan B available over the counter.

How Hard Should You Exercise?

When it comes to aerobic exercise, how hard should people work out? Vonda Wright, an orthopedic surgeon and author of Fitness After 40: How to Stay Strong at Any Age, says that if you're a newcomer to working out, you probably can start with a very simple "talk test." While you're exercising, can you have a conversation made up of single sentences? Your effort level shouldn't allow you to recite one of Hamlet's soliloquies, but you should be able to ask your walking buddy's opinion about Lindsay Lohan's latest antics, Katherine Hobson reports. That level qualifies as brisk exercise, says Wright.

Join U.S. News's 10-Week Workout, an easy-to-follow plan that Wright developed. It'll help you meet the government's recommendation of 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise per week.

10 Secrets to Finding Happiness During the Recession

How can we truly feel happy right now, in this moment when our 401(k)'s and house values are tanking? When our jobs are threatened or already lost? U.S. News posed this question to leading happiness researchers to find out what tools we can employ to stay upbeat in gloomy days. While some lucky folks are born with sunny dispositions, others, according to the latest studies, can learn to be happy, Deborah Kotz reports. How? "We need to move away from the concept of trying to fill our days with frequent pleasurable moments and fewer negative moments," explains Todd Kashdan, a professor of positive psychology at George Mason University and author of Curious? Discover the Missing Ingredient to a Fulfilling Life . "What truly provides satisfaction is having a meaning and purpose in life, which is doubly important in the midst of this current economic nightmare."

Consider these 10 secrets for being happy during bad economic times. Also, learn how to get happy and become "infected" with happiness.

— January W. Payne

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